Closure for collapsible tubes and the like



Aug. 1, 1933. Q J JESNIG 1,920,199

CLOSURE FOR COLLAPSIBLE TUBES AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 2'7, 1952 4 I NVE/V 70 Char/as JJS/my.

f' HTTO RNEY 15 which embodies, among other things, a sealing t formedintegral therewith and closed at its op- Patentecl Aug. 1,1933 a CLOSUREFOR COLLAPSIBLE TUBES AND THE LIKE qharles J. Jesnig, Philadelphia, Pa.1

Application September 27, 1932. Serial'No'. 635,019

9 Claims. (Cl. 221-60.)

A principal object of the present invention is ly in elevation andpartially in central section, the provision of a novel form of closurefor reshowing the cap as it appears prior to assembly ceptacles such asthe collapsible tubes or the like with the other parts, the non-metallicsealing elewhich are commonly employed for holding toothment and theneck and upper end of the tube;

5 paste, shaving cream, and other generally similar Fig. 5 is a top planview of the neck and upper plastic materials and from which the saidmateportion of the tube prior to assembly with the rials are ejected asrequired by suitable pressure other said parts, and Fig. 6 is anenlarged perapplied to the body of the tube. spective view of thesealing element. jIhrough A further object of the invention is theproviout the drawing the same characters of refer- 10 sion of a closurefor a tube of the character ence areused to designate, the same parts.

aforesaid which is effective to completely seal the Referring now moreparticularly to the drawtube when closed but which may be readilyopering, the tube is of usual construction and thus ated to permit theejection from the tube of any comprises a generally cylindrical body Tof thin desired quantity of the contained material; metal such asaluminum or zinc having one end element made of non-metallic materialthrough posite end'by folding the metal over upon it-; the medium ofwhich the actual sealing of the self after thepaste or other materialwhich the neck of the tube is effected, said sealing element tube is tocontain has been introduced therein. being interposed between said neckwhich is de- As usual, the end t is of generally conical form sirablyintegral with the tube body and a movand in accordance with thepresentinvention is able cap carried by and supported from the neck,provided, with an axially extending neck 1 havwhereby metal to metalcontact is avoided being a bore12of suitable diameter, the neck beingtween the adjacent parts of the cap and the end preferably cast orotherwise formed integral of the neck between which the plastic materialwith the tube. The neck terminates in a conical is extruded. I extremity3 disposed beyond theouter end of A still further object of theinvention is the the bore 2, the surface 3' of this conical porprovisionof a closure of the character aforesaid tion forming a seat for thesealing element 5 which can be easily and cheaply manufactured,hereinafter more particularly described. This which is efiicient inoperation, embodies no loose conical portion is pierced with one or moregenparts liable to come off or be displaced when the erally inwardlyextending apertures 6 which thus 5 device is in use, which is adapted topermit the form passages from the bore 2, within the body exudation ofthe material in a constant stream of the neck through which materialcontained in so long as suitable pressure is applied to the body thetube can pass to the conical surface 3'. Dev of the tube, which merelyrequires the screwing sirably and as bestshown in Fig. 5, these ,pasdownor unscrewing of thecap portion of the sages 6 are of arcuate contourwhen viewed end-- 0 device to seal or unseal the closure, and which wiseand, when two of them are provided, are is of neat appearance and notliable to get out disposed in opposed diametric relation on oppoof orderor become damaged under the condisite sides of the axis of the neck andwhile I tions of use to'which devices of this character prefer toprovide passages of the general charac- 40 are necessarily subjected.ter of those shown, other forms of passage may Other objects, advantagesand novel features be utilized if desired so long as the same are ofdesign, construction and arrangement compreeffective to permit thematerial in the body hended by the invention are hereinafter more of thetube to freely reach the conical surface particularly pointed out orwill be apparent to at the end of the neck, which latter is preferably100 those skilled in the art from the followingdetruncated as at -7 ashort'distance below what scription of a preferred embodiment thereof aswould otherwise be its apex. illustrated in the accompanying drawing.The neck is provided below its conical surface In the said drawing, Fig.1 is an elevation of a 3' with external screw threads 8 and also,prefcollapsible tube provided with the closure of my erably,-with anundercut peripheral groove 9 disinvention; Fig. 2 is an enlargedfragmentary cenposed between the inner extremity of the threads 05 'tralsection of the closure and adjacent portion and the base of the neck. Inaccordance with of the tube shown'in Fig. 1 with the closure cap thecustomary methods of manufacture of arin closed ,position, and Fig. 3isa similar view ticles of this general character, the neck may be withthe cap in open position; Fig. 4, on the same initially formed bycasting to an external diam- 5 scale as Figs. 2 and 3, is a compositeview, partialetcr equal to or slightly greater than the correspondingdiameter of the threads and the latter then rolled therein in the wellknown way; simultaneously with this operation, the groove 9 can also bereadily rolled or otherwise suitably formed in theneck which ispreferably initially made of the same outside diameter in the zone to beoccupied by the groove as in the zone to be subsequently occupied by thethreads to enable the neck to be readily withdrawn from the mold inwhich it is formed. In certain circumstances it is also possible byusing a two part mold to cast the threads 8 and groove 9 directly in theneck, thus avoiding the separate rolling or other operation incident toforming them therein.

The passages 6 are also desirably formed in the neck when the latter iscast through the provision of suitablecores in the mold but if preferredthe outer end of the neck may be initially cast solid and the passagesthen drilled, broached, or otherwise formed therein in any convenientway.

The cap 10, which is operatively telescoped over the neck, is initiallyformed substantially as shown in Fig. 4, and thus embodies a dependinghollow cylindrical skirt 11 above which are internal threads 12 adaptedfor cooperation with the threads 8 on the neck while above the threadsthe interior of the cap may be formed to provide clearance, diminishingtoward the apex. of the a short annular or cylindrical surface 13 beyondwhich the inner surface of the cap is made conical as at 14 incorrespondence or substantial correspondence with the conical surface 3of the neck, the inclination of the respective surfaces being thussubstantially identical. Exteriorly, the body of the cap may be ofgenerally cylindrical contour but its upper outer surface is preferablyinwardly inclined in general correspondence with the inclined surface14, the cap terminating in a fiat annular surface 15 surrounding acentral outlet 16 of slightly greater diameter than the surface 7 of theneck.

Mention has been made of the sealing member 5 which, when the closure isassembled, is interposed between the conical surfaces 3 and 14 of theneck and cap respectively. This member is formed of c'elluloid or othergenerally similar slightly yieldablematerial unaifected by the paste orother substance which the tube is designed to contain and is in the formof a truncated hollow cone, as best'shown in Fig. 6. The wall of thesealing element is relatively thin and the opening in its 'upper end-isof only very slightly greater di- "ameter than the diameter of thesurface 7 of the neck so that when the element is seated on the latterit will depend from the end of the neck a suflicient distance to coveror substantially cover the conical surface 3 and in any case the mouthsof the passages 6 therein. The element is preferably so formed, however,that the angular inclination of its wall towards its central axis isslightly greater than the corresponding inclination of the surfaces 3and 14 so that when the element is seated on the former as justdescribed and not constrained into intimate engagement therewith by thepressure of the cap as hereinafter explained, it will flare outwardlyfrom the surface 3 to a slight extent so that a very small coned surface3, will exist between said surface and the sealing element.

The cap, neck and sealing element having been constructed substantiallyas described are assembled as indicated in Fig. 4, that is, by firstseating the element on the surface 3 of the neck and then screwing thecap downwardly thereover until its depending skirt 11 comes intoalignment with the groove 9. To prevent the subsequent removal of thecap by the user, the free edge of the skirt is then crimped inwardly asshown in Figs. 2 and 3 at 11, the parts being so proportioned that afterthis is done the cap is capable of being screwed down to compress thesealing. element between the conical faces 14 and 3 as shown in Fig. 2or unscrewed for a limited distance as shown in Fig. 3, the extent ofoutward travel of the cap being of course limited by the engagement ofthe flange with the upper or outer edge of the undercut groove 9.

It will thus be apparent that when the cap is pressed snugly againstsaid surface through the pressure exerted on the element by the conicalinner surface 14 of the cap. When the cap is unscrewed, however, thesealing element at once springs back to its normal shape thus separatingits inner face from the adjacent surface 3, and if pressure be nowapplied to the body of the tube in the usual way, the paste extrudedfrom the passages 6 carries the sealing element upwardly until itsfurther movement is arrested by engagement with the inner surface of thecap, the element then occupying a position slightly separated from theconical surface 3 and thus affording a hollow conical passage extendingentirely about said surface and beneath the element through which thepaste can pass upwardly through the opening at the upper end of thesealing element and thence through the. outlet 16 in the cap from whichit issues in a substantially round stream so long as the pressure on thebody of the tube is continued. Upon release of the pressure furtherexudation of the paste is arrested or substantially so and the cap maythen be screwed down to its initial or closed position thus bringing thesealing element again into intimate engagement with the conical surface3 and positively sealing the tube against further passage 'of the pasteor other material therefrom.

turn the cap back to initial posiiton when it is desired to positivelyseal the tube against further flow thereof. Under all conditions contactbetween the cap and the contents of the tube is prevented save as thecontents momentarily pass over the margin of the outlet 16 in the cap,while due to the tendency of the sealing element to spring away from theconical surface 3 whenever the pressure of the cap is removed, stickingof the element on the neck and consequent necessity for applyingpressure to the tube additional to that which would normally be requiredto extrude the paste therefrom is avoided. Thus whenever the cap isscrewed home, a positive sealing of the tube is brought about and sincethe sealing element, which of course under these conditions is incontact at the mouths of the passages 6 with the material contained inthe tube, is preferably made of a material inert to the latter, alldanger of contaminating the paste effective way.

closure the material in the tube, as stated, is extruded from the outlet16 in the cap in a substantially round stream and can thus be readilyapplied to a toothbrush or other article in an While I have hereindescribed one form of my invention with considerable particularity I donot thereby desire or intend to specifically limit myself to any precisedetails of design, construction or assembly of the various parts as thesame are capable of modification in minor particulars as will be readilyunderstood by those familiar with the art without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, Irclaim ,and desire to protect byLetters Patent. of the United States:

' 1. In combination, a collapsible tube having a neck provided with aconical end surface and a passage extending therefrom to the interior ofthe neck, a cap having an inner conical surface seating over the end ofthe neck and a discharge outlet, said cap arranged for movement towardand away from the conical surface of the neck, and a yieldable sealingelement interposed between saidconical surfaces free to movelongitudinally thereof in correspondence with the movement of .the cap.2. In combination, a collapsible tube having an exteriorly threaded neckterminating in a conical surface and having a passage" leading therefromto its interior, an internally threaded cap seating over the end of theneck provided with an inner conical surface and an outlet at the smallerend thereof, and a yieldable conical sealing element loosely interposedbetween said conical surfaces and movable axially into engagement withthe conical surface of the neck when the capis screwed down on thelatter to .thereby seal the passage therein against extrusion of thematerial contained in the tube.

3 In combination, a collapsible tube having an exteriorly threaded neckterminating in a conical surface and having a passage leading therefromto its interior, an internally threaded cap seating over the end of theneck provided with an inner conical surface and an outlet at the smallerend thereof, and a non-rigid conical 5 terial contained in the tube and,whenthe cap is unscrewed for a limited distance, operative to moveaxially away from said surface under the pressure of the materialextruded from the tube to thereby afford for said material a hollowconical passage to the outlet in the cap between the surface of the neckand the sealing element. 4. In combination, a collapsible tube having anexternally threaded neck terminating in a truncated conical surface anda passage leading from said surface to the interior of the neck, aconical sealing element of yielding material having arr' opening in itssmaller end adapted toseat over the conical end of the neck and a caphaving internal threads cooperative with the threads on the neck, aninner conical-sur face adjacent its extremity and an outlet at thesmaller end of said surface, said cap when screwed irrwardly on the neckoperating to forcethe sealing element into intimate contact withftheconical surface thereof to thereby seal the passage therein, said,element when the cap is unscrewed being free to move axially outwardwith respect to the neck to afford a passage between the element and theneck for the material in the'tube when extruded therefrom through thepassage in the neck by pressure on the tube.

' 5. In combination, a collapsible tube having an externally threadedneck terminating in a truncated conical surface and a passage leadingfrom said surface to the interior of the neck, a

conical sealing element of yielding material having an opening in itssmaller end adapted to seat over the conical end of the neck, and a moveaxially outward with respect to the neck" to afford a passage betweenthe element and the neck for the material in the tube when extrudedtherefrom through-the passage in the neck by pressure on the tube.

6. In combination, a collapsible tube having a neck terminating in atruncated conical surface and provided with external screw threadsbetween said surface and the body of the tube, a cap seating on the neckand having internal threads cooperative with those on the neck, said capcomprising an inner conical surface of angularity corresponding to theconical surface of the neck and an outlet at the small end thereof, anda conical sealing element of yieldable material interposed between-saidconical "surfaces, the walLof the element being normally of greaterangular inclination toward its axis than said surfaces, said elementbeing free to move axially into intimate engagement with the conicalsur-' face on the neck when .the capis screwed inwardly thereon and tospring outwardly from the neck when the pressureof the cap on theelement is released by screwing it in the opposite direction.

'7. In combination, a collapsible tube having a neck terminating in 'atruncated conical end surface and\ having screw threads interposedbetween said surface and the base of the neck and a passage leading fromsaid surface to the interior thereof, a cap seating over the neck andhaving internal threads cooperating with those on the latter whereby thecap may be moved axially of the neck, said cap also having an innerconical surface of corresponding inclination to that of the neck andterminating in an outlet opening at the outer extremity of the cap,means for limiting axial movement of the cap outwardly of the neck, anda conical sealing element formed of yieldable materialinterposed betweensaid conical surfaces, the normal angular inclination of the wall of theelement being greater than that of said surfaces, said element beingfree to move axially to intimately engage the conical surface of theneck to seal the passage therein when pressed thereagainst by an axialmovement of the cap toward the tube and when the pressure of the cap onthe element is relieved by moving the cap away from the tube body tospring outwardly from said surface and afford a passage beneath theelement for material extruded from the neck by pressure on the body ofthe tube.

8. In combination, a collapsible tube having a neck terminating in atruncated conical surface and having an axially ofiset passage leadingto its interior, a cap seated on the neck, axially movable with respectthereto and having an internal conical surface terminating in an outletopening at its outer end, and a non-metallic non-rigid conical sealingelement loosely inter-Q posed between the cap and the neck andcompressible between both said surfaces by a movement of the cap towardthe neck to thereby seal the passage in the latter.

can relatively to the neck to thereby tightly compress said sealingelement between said surfaces.

CHARLES J. JESNIG.

